by Zhuang Bifan
If they wanted to spend the seven days here in safety, they'd have to get through tonight first.
But, it was not easy to find a safe place in a hurry. It took Lin Li almost an hour to walk through the path. Watching the sky darken gradually, they finally spotted a small cave. The cave was situated just below a cliff, and was quite well concealed. It did not look very deep from a distance—the walls of the cave could be seen at a glance. Moreover, it was quite dry inside, completely different from the damp and slippery feeling outside, and outside the cave, a tuft of withered and yellow weed could even be seen.
Weed… what a rare thing to see in the Shadowglen…
So, Lin Li had chosen the cave at the first glance. Still, in order to be more on the safe side, he released a Warlock's Eyes, and searched every place within 100 meters of the cave.
"We'll stay here for the night." Lin Li's face showed some satisfaction when he retrieved the Warlock's Eyes. The cave was really good—there were no signs of undead creatures within 100 meters. This was simply something unthinkable in the Shadowglen, where the undead ran rampant.
Since Lin Li had said so, Mason and Orrin naturally had no objection. Besides, the cave environment was really good. Let alone tonight, they wouldn't have any objection if they were to live here for the next seven days if possible.
After a discussion, the three men decided on a simple division of labor. Mason took out his sleeping bag and blanket from his backpack, and arranged a temporary dwelling; Orrin set up a bonfire in the cave; meanwhile, Lin Li took out the crystal pen from his pocket, then dipped it in the navy sand, and laid out two mageweaths at the mouth of the cave.
One was the Mental Protection Field, which could not only be used to ward off mental spells, but also to protect against Eidolons 1 such as ghosts. Before they became resentful souls, ordinary ghosts would not be able to pass through the Mental Protection Field.
Another was the Seal of Life, used specially to shield the Scent of Life of the three guys.
High-level undead creatures were the most s.e.n.s.i.t.i.v.e to living people—the Vampires especially so. A small trace of life was like an endless temptation for them. In the Shadowglen, where the undead ran rampant, this Seal of Life was essential if they did not want to be discovered by the higher-level undead creatures.
After the two mageweaths were completed, the bonfire was ignited by Orrin as well.
The three guys, wrapped in blankets and leaning against the cave wall, which was heated by the fire, all felt a sense of drowsiness…
"Good night." Lin Li wriggled into his sleeping bag, and soon fell asleep.
All three of them slept very soundly amidst the soft snoring, and none of them noticed that there seemed to be a slight maroon flickering in the light of the fire on Lin Li's body that was covered with the blanket.
…
Lin Li, who was sleeping soundly, seemed to hear a slight noise. It sounded like a spring silkworm gnawing on mulberry leaves; the rustling sound continued on, and made Lin Li extremely annoyed, but he was reluctant to get up from the warm bed. He merely frowned, and muttered two meaningless words in his mouth.
"Help!" It was not until a scream rang out that Lin Li suddenly woke up from his dream.
He sat up from his blanket almost unconsciously, staring out of the cave with his eyes fixed and his ears straining in the direction of the sound.
"Save us!" Just as Lin Li sat up, the voice rang again. Judging from the voice, it seemed to be a young man in his twenties.
"It's the mage who participated in the trial!" Lin Li quickly turned over, and shook his two sleeping companions vigorously. "Quick, wake up, it seems that someone is in trouble."
"Felic, what are you doing…" Mason rubbed his eyes with his hands, and reluctantly emerged from the blanket. "It's in the middle of the night, can't you let me sleep in peace…"
Orrin did not speak, but his eyes were full of confusion.
"It looks like someone is in trouble. Let's go out and have a look."
"Hell…" Mason complained reluctantly, but eventually climbed out of his warm bed.
As he walked out of the cave, Mason looked at Lin Li with some doubt. "It isn't right, Felic. You fellow, you are usually not so enthusiastic. What benefit did that guy give you?"
"I am such a person in your eyes?" Lin Li stared at Mason fiercely, but he couldn't help feeling guilty inwardly. To be honest, he was really up to no good at present…
It was not a big deal to help a lame dog over a stile, but in the Shadowglen—a dangerous place where the undead were rampant—Lin Li had no interest in meddling with other people's business. He could put himself in danger instead of successfully helping the other party.
Besides, all trial mages had the Teleportation Scroll with them; they could return directly to the camp if they had encountered any danger. There was no need to struggle desperately and disrupt other people's dreams in the middle of the night.
Lin Li wanted to go over because he wanted to know what trouble the team of trial mages had encountered—that was the most important thing.
The sound came from somewhere very near them—just a few dozen meters outside the cave.
Lin Li remembered clearly that he had conducted a thorough search with the Warlock's Eyes before laying down the two mageweaths; there were no signs of undead within 100 meters. This meant that either he had overlooked them somewhere, or that something suddenly appeared in the middle of the night.
Anyhow, it was not a good thing.
Lin Li felt uneasy and scared. He was even grateful to the unfortunate trial mages. If they hadn't appeared, it would be him calling for help at present.
He had just walked out of the cave when he saw a fire ablaze not far ahead—it was the rays of the Flaming Storm.
The rumbling muffled sound came with the rays, followed by another scream. "Help!"
"F*ck…" Mason spat, and cursed crudely. "Don't they know how to use the Teleportation Scroll? They had to shout for help in the middle of the night, b*tch!"
"Let's go over and have a look." With the light of the Flaming Storm leading the way, Lin Li could save on using the Illuminating Spell. After all, this was the Shadowglen—a little light might also attract the undead.
The three guys walked along the steep hillside, and quietly groped their way in the direction of the scream. A few dozen meters was only a short distance for them. Before the light from the Flaming Storm had disappeared, Lin Li saw several figures leaning against the hillside. They looked very young, and wore the black robes of the Guild of Magic. It seemed that they were indeed the mages from this trial…
One of the young men—a long-haired youngster—had already suffered some injuries; blood gushed out from the wound, and dyed red a large area on the mountain walls behind him. The other two companions were also in a bad situation. Although they held their magic staffs tightly, the magical waves that emitted from them were extremely weak. Lin Li estimated that their mana had already been more or less exhausted.
A dozen meters ahead of them, a large group of Skeletal Warriors with rusty machetes in their hands was approaching them step by step…
Mason's eyes were wide open, and he held back for a long time before he finally uttered, "This is too fake… Mages who are taking part in the trial are forced to shout for help by a group of Skeletal Warriors; are they still seeing themselves as mage apprentices?"
"Idiot." Orrin glared at him, and pointed his staff behind the Skeletal Warriors. "Look what that is…"
Behind the large group of Skeletal Warriors stood the same deathly white skeleton; there was the same will-o-the-wisp, but what was in its hands was not a rusty machete, but a skeleton staff inlaid with a huge magical crystal! Its aura was different from that of the Skeletal Warriors—it was powerful and mysterious, filled with a strong deathly aura.
"F*ck! Hell Ghoul!" Mason gave a start of fright. It was also a skeleton, but the Skeletal Warriors were no more than level-five, while for the Hell
Ghouls, the weakest were no less than level-ten. The strongest of them might even break through to level-fifteen, and regain their bodies to become true Liches.
And in this Shadowglen, the power of the Hell Ghoul could be maximized. They were born manipulators of Skeletal Warriors. They could control hundreds and thousands of skeleton legion with only one spell.
"These few fellows are really unlucky…"
"If they weren't unlucky, it would be us who'd be unlucky." Lin Li was speaking the truth. With the keenness of the Hell Ghoul to magical elements, it was almost logical for them to find the two mageweaths. When the time came, they'd be trapped in the cave, with hundreds of skeletons pouring in. The best way out would be to teleport back to the camp using the scrolls they had.
While the two guys were whispering, the staff in the hands of the Hell Ghoul flashed again. a spirit-image of a living or dead person; a shade or phantom look-alike of the human form.
Chapter 139 - Soul Summoning (1/3)
The light from the Skeleton Staff glowed brighter and brighter, bringing the already precarious situation to an extreme. Lin Li seemed to have heard a continuous whoosh—it was the sound of a large number of Skeletal Warriors stirring. The surrounding earth was slowly loosening, and deathly white skeletons slowly crept out of the ground one after another…
The Skeletal Warriors that were approaching steadily increased from tens to hundreds in an instant. At that moment, the numerous deathly white skeletons and their rusty machetes exuded a depressing aura of death in the dark of the night.
The battle that came after could be described as a dying struggle. Facing an almost impossible-to-defeat enemy, the three trial mages chose not to teleport, but to recite their spells. Among them, the injured long-haired youngster was the strongest, and had the most sufficient mana. He undertook the attack role almost alone. His two teammates had exhausted too much mana, and had no ability to attack at this time; they could only use some low-consumption spells such as the Delaying Spell and the Spell of Frost to provide some assistance to their teammates.
Despite suffering some injuries, the real strength of the long-haired youngster was not weak. For a moment, he was killing with bravado with the full support of his two teammates. He unleashed one lethal spell after another, and wiped out more than a dozen Skeletal Warriors in a flash.
But on the other side of the battlefield, the summoning of the Hell Ghoul continued; a steady stream of white bones rose from the ground. Every dozen of Skeletal Warriors that fell was replaced with another dozen of Skeletal Warriors. This was the most terrifying aspect of the undead—they were not afraid of exhaustion at all. The endless cannon fodder could slowly nibble at any enemy. Faced with an endless sea of corpses and bones, even a legendary mage would have their mana exhausted.
Lin Li had seen through the strength of the trial team ahead—two level-eight mages who had exhausted their mana and one injured level-nine mage. It would have been extremely difficult to confront a large number of Skeletal Warriors with such a force, not to mention the addition of the Hell Ghoul. Unless they were able to kill the Hell Ghoul instantly, the Skeletal Warriors it constantly summoned would be enough to send the three back to the camp.
From the current situation, perhaps this only way would not be feasible as well.
Under the siege of the large group of Skeletal Warriors, they would not be able to fly out even if they had wings, let alone kill the Hell Ghoul.
"Why are they not teleporting?" Lin Li was puzzled. The strength of the two sides was not at the same level at all. Even a blind man could see that there was no chance for them; so, what were the fellows thinking? Did they think that continuing the trial mission was more important than their own lives?
"They were probably scared silly," Mason mumbled softly.
"Idiot, would you still recite a spell if you're scared silly?"
Mason was rendered speechless at Orrin's chide, but this fellow had a thick skin. Even if he knew he was in the wrong, he still had to say something. "Maybe they are gifted!"
"Go and die…"
The two guys were bickering when situation of the battle ahead suddenly changed.
The long-haired youngster began to recite a long spell under the protection of the Spell of Frost. The power of this magic spell far exceeded that of those he had used previously. The surrounding magical elements seemed to surge in an instant. Even the three guys who were peeping in the distance could clearly feel the power of this spell.
"He's going to give it his all…" Lin Li shook his head. The more powerful this spell was, the more mana it consumed. Even if the long-haired youngster had reached the strength of a level-nine mage, his mana would inevitably be exhausted following the release of the spell.
"Say… Shall we help him?" Mason was slightly hesitant.
"We must help," Lin Li said with certainty; the smile on his face was rather weird. "But we have to choose the right time."
The reason why Lin Li made such a decision had nothing to do with helping a lame dog over a stile. This fellow was used to being selfish; even if he had decided to help at this time, it was almost entirely out of selfishness.
From Lin Li's point of view, the Hell Ghoul had to be destroyed sooner or later. Otherwise, if it was allowed to wander around in the vicinity, it would only be a matter of time before the cave they were hiding in was exposed. It'd be better to take advantage of the fact that someone was stalling it now; they could finish it off with one strike when the time came, or they'd have to confront the enemy and deal with the Skeletal Warriors it summoned at the same time—it'd be too much trouble instead then.
However… they'd have to look at the situation before showing their hands; it was definitely not the right time at present. Numerous Skeletal Warriors were crammed there; It was enough trouble just to blast a way through with a spell. Furthermore, they'd have to deal with the other undead creatures that it constantly summoned. They'd have to wait…
"When's the right time?"
"Of course it'll be at the most crucial time!"
"…"
Just as they were talking, the spell recitation of the long-haired youngster was drawing to a close. The surging magical elements burst into full swing; a bone-biting chill filled the surrounding air as countless snowflakes drifted down from the sky. A cold wave swept wildly through the group of Skeletal Warriors, freezing at least a dozen of them in an instant.
After the Snowstorm, the mana of the long-haired youngster was completely exhausted. Lin Li could clearly feel that the magical wave from him was even weaker than the other two.
In fact, this was a good opportunity to kill the Hell Ghoul. Most of the Skeletal Warriors had been frozen, and the summoning of the Hell Ghoul had just come to an end. If the long-haired youngster had the strength to spare, a few instantaneous spells would do the job. Even if it couldn't kill the Hell Ghoul, it could probably deal a heavy blow to it.
Unfortunately…
After barely releasing a Snowstorm, the long-haired youngster could not even lift his hands, let alone release any magic spells.
He could only watch helplessly as the opportunity slipped from his hands…
"Now's the crucial time!" As soon as Lin Li uttered the words, the fireball in his hands had been fired with a blast.
"Boom!"
When the huge fireball hit the Hell Ghoul, the dull reverberation seemed to shake the earth…
The three of them had cooperated for so long that they had fostered enough tacit understanding long ago. Before Lin Li's fireball was fired, his two teammates had already began their recitations. When the fireball burst open, and the splendid flames spattered, the two guys had finished their spell recitations consecutively.
In an instant, countless blazes rose up. These two fellows had chosen the Flaming Storm without prior agreement. But, after all, Mason was only a level-nine mage. His casting speed was far slower than Orrin, a level-11 Magic Shooter. Although they had started reciting at the same time,
the release of his Flaming Storm was more than a second later than Orrin.
"F*ck…" Mason also knew that this short second signified a huge disparity. The fellow had cursed in anger as soon as the Flaming Storm was released.
This fellow did have some indignation; he thought that he could be considered the cream of the crop with his level-nine strength, but didn't expect to meet his two teammates—one a powerful level-11 Magic Shooter, and another a freak through and through. He could not even make out the truth about the latter's strength…
He was lucky not to be driven out of his mind under such harsh survival conditions.
The long-haired youngster had frozen almost all the Skeletal Warriors with his Snowstorm. For a while, there was no summoned creature to share the damage with the Hell Ghoul. The Hell Ghoul was blown to pieces after a round of bombardment by the three guys. Innumerable sparks shot up at once, and scattered bones fell all over the ground. The magical crystal on the Skeleton Staff fell, and rolled over several times on the ground…
This sudden turn of events frightened the trial team. The three of them stared at the bone fragments with a glazed expression on their faces. The scene before them was too bizarre—it was like a r.a.p.e case in which the victim struggled desperately but was still stripped of her clothes; as she was ready to close her eyes for enjoyment, she suddenly found out that someone had castrated the rapist…
All three of them looked at Lin Li at the same time. They wondered who had castrated the rapist— cough, who had killed the Hell Ghoul?
Lin Li paid no heed to these doubtful looks. He was currently busier than anyone else.
Undead creatures carried magical crystals as well, but these magical crystals often possessed powerful Death Energy. Ordinary mages could not use them at all; only Lin Li, who was well-versed in all five series, could make the magical crystal of the undead creatures become the same—or even more powerful—as that of a magical beast through a special treatment!
"Damn! Why does it not have it?" Lin Li searched around the area where the Hell Ghoul exploded, but he never found the magical crystal he had imagined.
